We caught up with Marketing Manager Victoria from Plus Accounting.
She shared with us her thoughts on hiring a digital marketing apprentice…
Tell us a bit about your business?
As you would expect from a firm of chartered accountants, we offer a comprehensive range of tax and accounting services. So whether you are just starting out or thinking about selling your business, we can provide you with the support and guidance that you need to keep control of your finances and plan your affairs for maximum efficiency.
How did you hear about Creative Process/digital apprenticeships?
I met a team member of Creative Process at a Brighton Chamber networking breakfast and then I think I ended up speaking with somebody who had used the apprenticeship team and spoke highly of the quality of candidate – so I thought I would check it out!
Why did you decide an apprentice would be right for your business?
I have been with the business for 14 years in a variety of roles and ended up in the marketing role about 6 years ago. The role quickly developed and my time was starting to be stretched too thinly so I made a conscious effort to work out a viable business solution – I presented this to the directors of Plus Accounting and they agreed that it was worth investigating further.
What advice would you give to other businesses considering hiring an apprentice?
I would advise to not take the first CV you see or apprentice you read, don’t rush in to making a decision as you have to make sure that the person is the right for the firm and you are the right fit for the person. I met with over 10 candidates in total and I am extremely glad I did, the more I interviewed the more I understood what I was looking for.
Would you hire another apprentice?
As a firm we have always hired Accounting Apprentices but we had not previously explored this option for the other areas of the business. Going forward we would certainly continue to look at Apprentices as a viable option and have found the process extremely positive.
What’s surprised you most about having an apprentice?
I think the most surprising thing is the eagerness to learn and make sure that job is completed to a high standard and on time, the assumption that the younger generation do not care is absolutely not true. I have found that tasks are completed efficiently and effectively – the speed that tasks are picked up is great and enables the department to be much more agile, which is extremely important when it comes to marketing.
Is there anything you would like to add?
I think if you are considering taking on an apprentice you have to be prepared to be put the time and effort in at the beginning, I wanted to ensure that every task was explained as best as possible and the overall objective of the task understood completely. This meant that the first few months’ tasks that would have taken a few minutes were taking hours, however it doesn’t take long for this to change and now the tasks are probably being completed much quicker by the apprentice!
